SEC-Licensed Broker-Dealer BitOoda Secures $7M Seed Funding

United States-based cryptocurrency brokerage BitOoda has secured $7 million funding from major investors including former senior investment exec at JPMorgan.

Founded in 2017, BitOoda positions itself as a digital asset financial services platform that combines digital finance and applied science.

Investors are former execs from British Petroleum, JPMorgan and S&P Global Platts

According to an official announcement on Dec. 23, BitOoda’s new seed round featured founder of international energy analytics firm PIRA Energy Gary Ross, who is also a former head of  global oil analytics and chief energy economist at S&P Global Platts. Other investors included Roy Salame, former managing director and head of global investment opportunities group at JPMorgan, as well as Calvin Schlenker, former senior executive at British Petroleum.

As noted in the announcement, the firm has purportedly distinguished itself by designing and executing two major products including financial swap the BitOoda Difficulty and physical hashpower contract the BitOoda Hash.

BitOoda is registered with major U.S. regulators like the SEC and CFTC

The firm’s operations include registration as a broker-dealer with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, as well as registration as an introducing broker with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission and the National Futures Association.

BitOoda founder and CEO Tim Kelly noted that the seed round unlocks major growth opportunities including the company’s considerations to expand operations both in the U.S. as well as Asia and Europe. According to Kelly, BitOoda sees particular growth in demand for its services in Asia. The executive said in an email to Cointelegraph:

“We are seeing significant interest out of Asia as well as in our advisory services business. Our funding round is critical in building the capacity to capitalize on these opportunities.”

Also on Dec. 23, BitOoda published its recent Global & Regulatory Analysis, outlining that a set of U.S. bills known as the Crypto-Currency Act of 2020 is the “most promising U.S. regulatory development in recent memory." The firm wrote:

“In our view, this is precisely the type of law that could enable executive branch agencies to not only better coordinate their efforts, but also to move beyond the 1930’s laws to which they are currently tied in terms of interpretation and application to digital assets.”